The invention relates to dispensers and, more particularly, to dispensers for two rolls of toilet tissue and similar rolls of sheet material.
One type toilet tissue dispenser for public restrooms and the like is arranged to dispense two rolls of tissue. Such dispensers typically include some sort of mechanism for limiting access by users to only one roll at a time.
One known double roll toilet tissue dispenser has a housing including a base having a pair of supports for rotatably supporting two rolls of toilet tissue side by side and a cover hinged to the base and cooperating therewith to define a storage compartment for both rolls. The dispenser housing has an elongated opening through which a user can gain access to both rolls of toilet tissue. A slider partially covers the opening and is movable between a first dispensing position to permit access to a first roll while blocking access to the second roll and a second dispensing position to permit access to the second roll and block access to the first roll. An arm carried by the slider is arranged to clear an empty roll core but engages tissue on a full or partially full roll to prevent the slider from being moved to the second dispensing position until all or substantially all the tissue on the first roll has been used. Thus, a user cannot gain access to the second roll until the first roll is empty.
The slider is spring biased toward the first dispensing position and, after being moved to the second dispensing position, is releasably held in that position by a detent on the cover. The detent is released when the cover is opened to replace rolls and the spring returns the slider to the first dispensing position.
Starting with two full rolls during normal use, the slider is biased to the first position by the spring and users can use tissue from the first roll but not the second. Upon finding the first roll empty, a user slides the slider to the second dispensing position and starts using tissue from the second roll. As part of routine maintenance, attendants typically are instructed to remove the empty core for the first roll, replace it with the partially used second roll and install a new roll in place of the partially used second one. The slider is returned by the spring to the first dispensing position when the cover is opened, so the above cycle is repeated after the cover is closed.
It is not uncommon for an attendant to merely replace the empty core of the first roll with a new roll, rather than removing the empty core for the first roll, replace it with the partially used second roll and install a new roll in place of the partially used second one. When this neglect occurs, the second roll often is partially used when a user moves the slider to the second dispensing position. Consequently, an attendant inspecting a dispenser and finding it still in the first dispensing position may underestimate how long it will take for the second roll to be used up. Also, if both rolls are partially used when a maintenance person opens the cover for inspection, there may be tendency to discard both rolls and replace them with new ones.